Meghan McCain has never been shy about her political opinions. The 26-year-old thinks the media has an unhealthy obsession with Sarah Palin and that President Obama should stop talking about what's on his iPod. Speaking with her mother, Cindy, at Maria Shriver's Women's Conference, Meghan opened up even more. I attended the Q + A and here's what I found out!
Does being a mother make a person a better political candidate?
Meghan: For my generation, motherhood is a lot less emphasized. I'm 26, and hardly any of my friends are married with kids. It's not a big deal.
Cindy: Motherhood gives you an important perspective. It gives you an opportunity to look at global issues like poverty and hunger in a different way.
Can female icons be smart and sexy?
Meghan: I think women can do anything. No matter what you feel about Sarah Palin, Nancy Pelosi, or Hillary Clinton, looks often come first in a discussion about them. I struggle with this. So, being a woman in any industry you have to think: can I be smart and still like makeup? But women shouldn't have to change themselves.
How can women support each other?
Meghan: We as women need to condemn women who bully other women. Most criticism I've gotten comes from older women. I find it very dated, and very '70s. Women candidates are not taken as seriously because mainstream media is run by men and sexist women.
What do you make of female candidates like Christine O'Donnell?
First Lady Michelle Obama used the platform of Maria Shriver's Women's Conference today as a chance to shine light on one issue: the plight of military wives.
Before Barack Obama decided to run for president, Michelle had a job she loved and small children at home. She needed some convincing before she got on board with the campaign, but once she did, Michelle decided to focus on women and be a voice for them. Michelle said that she felt "that every single woman I knew regardless of race, geographical location, income — we were all struggling to keep it together."
Once she got out there, something surprised her. "In the stories of the women I met I recognized my own story," she explained. But "there was one group of women whose stories were new to me – and whose questions I often didn’t have answers to." Those were the military wives. Michelle explained that this group of women deal with the same problems many women face — be it work-life balance, or trying to get ahead in your career — but to a magnified degree. She told the audience: "Try balancing work and family when your partner has a dangerous job halfway around the world. Want to talk about glass ceilings, try doing that when you keep moving and don't work somewhere long enough to get promoted?"
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